Martial Ascent to Divinity

"Start mining! Anyone interested can also mine manually."

Everyone shook their heads.

"Mining is too dangerous."

Zhou Leng looked at the mine entrance and asked, "Why does Chang Luan call it an abandoned mine?"

Xue Chengsong replied, "It was originally an abandoned mine."

"Then..." Zhou Leng wasn't too familiar with these matters.

Xue Chengsong smiled and said, "Do you think a small Pioneer Company like ours has the ability to explore new mines or the qualification to extract new ones?"

"Understood." Zhou Leng had heard a few things.

Xue Chengsong continued speaking.

"Only the big forces have the strength and qualification to mine rich mines. Once they extract to a certain extent, and the profits become too low, they'll sell it off."

"After these mines are mined a second time, they become abandoned mines."

"However, each Demon City is at the intersection of at least two worlds, constantly changing."

"Even abandoned mines might contain good minerals."

"Part of the business for us small Pioneer Companies is to dig up these abandoned mines to earn some hard money."

"Generally speaking, different Pioneer Companies have default resource areas and only hunt or mine within their own zones."

"But these resource areas aren't officially certified; they're fought over and often have vague boundaries."

"Like this mountain, which is in a gray area, leading to a struggle between our two families."

Zhou Leng nodded. He had only heard about such resource disputes before; it was his first time participating in one.

"You said individual prospecting is allowed?" Zhou Leng asked.

"Just to try it out. Nowadays, it's mostly machine-operated mining, selecting high-energy ores."

"It's not impossible for individuals to go in and mine, but the chance of finding something is too low to justify it."

Zhou Leng asked, "What high-energy ores are produced in Shuizhou Demon City?"

"Many, and varied. Generally, they're gemstone mines or regular demonized ores, used to make Demonized Items and Demon Spirit Artifacts."

"If it's just regular metal ores, unless they're particularly good rich mines, there's no point in mining them. The extraction costs are too high, and the risks outweigh the benefits."

"As for the best mineral, it's Spirit Land Jade. Most Spirit Land Jade from various realms comes from mines."

"Of course, there are some ultra-high-energy ores, like Blood Crystals and Bone Crystals, which are remnants of powerful creatures. Digging out one can sell for tens of millions, but they're rare. My family only dug out one Blood Crystal over the years."

"Besides that, there are some unknown high-energy substances or collectibles. The universe has too many secrets to predict."

Everyone nodded, acknowledging they wouldn't know these things without being here.

Xue Chengsong said, "A few years ago, my dad discovered a High-Energy Shell. This thing appears occasionally in various realms and is considered a common collectible. My dad wasn't interested in the High-Energy Shell and sold it for thirty thousand. The buyer flipped it for two million, and my dad grumbled for half a month."

"Boss Xue is wealthy. If it were me, I'd grumble for half a lifetime," someone joked.

Xue Chengsong said, "This is the first time this abandoned mine is being mined since the appearance of the Celestial Ladder. Without a doubt, there will be treasures. Now, it's just a matter of your discerning eyes!"

Everyone gathered, chatting and laughing.

As night fell, mining carts emerged from the mountain. Mining workers, guided by detectors, sorted out the high-energy ores, laying them on the ground.

Under the lights, more than a hundred various ores were spread all over.

Some were large, others were small; some were dull, others were shiny.

Most people were seeing so many high-energy ores for the first time and watched with curiosity.

Xue Chengsong said, "Zhou Leng, you pick first. Whatever it is, it's yours. Everyone else, line up and come one by one. This is all about luck."

"The instruments can't detect them?"

"The energy in the ores is chaotic, greatly interfering with instruments. Only the most expensive Demon Spirit Artifacts in the Demon Spirit World can detect them, and the cost is unthinkable."

Zhou Leng walked into the open space where the high-energy ores were displayed, sensing as he went.

Just as Xue Chengsong said, there were indeed sensations of Spiritual Qi and mysterious powers, but they were chaotic, fluctuating in intensity.

He walked around but couldn't decide on a specific piece.

Zhou Leng continued walking and observing, stopping in front of a rock about the size of a human head, its surface dotted with green crystals.

He vaguely sensed that this rock's Spiritual Qi was distinct from the others.

Since he couldn't decide what to pick, he chose this piece.

"This one," Zhou Leng picked up the high-energy ore.

"Are we opening it here or at home?"

"Let's open it here; it might not be anything valuable," Zhou Leng said.

While some remained to choose ores, only a few people followed Zhou Leng and Xue Chengsong to cut open the ore.

After about ten minutes, the worker cutting the ore exclaimed, "It's out, Spirit Land Jade."

Everyone rushed over, even those selecting ores stopped.

"Zhou Leng's luck..." Xue Chengsong clicked his tongue, full of envy.

"Approximately how much Spiritual Qi in multiples?"

"The color isn't deep, probably a bit over six times, likely less than seven, so it's a small one."

"That's still pretty good, at least three million."

"Could be worth more."

Shortly after, under everyone's watchful eyes, a complete piece of Spirit Land Jade was extracted.

About half the size of a palm, shaped like a thick leaf, vibrantly green.

It resembled jadeite but brighter, with a subtle magnetism that drew attention.

"This quality is good. With a bit of carving, it could sell for three million."

"No, don't carve Spirit Land Jade recklessly; it could affect its Spiritual Qi."

Xue Chengsong sighed, "The piece I have isn't as good as yours; it's the most ordinary five times Spirit Land Jade and smaller by two sizes. This stuff is highly sought after. Since you don't have one, just take it to a gold shop, get an edge, then thread a cord, and wear it around your neck."

"Okay." Zhou Leng carefully examined the Spirit Land Jade in his hand.

In the future, wearing a Spirit Land Jade will increase both cultivation speed and True Qi recovery speed, even if not under the Frost Giant Tree.

"Come on, let's go find the ores too!"

"Let's go!"

Everyone was bursting with enthusiasm; each person wanted to find treasures just like Zhou Leng.

They all began to pick ores, and proceeded to divide them up.

In the end, they were all ordinary ores, with the best being Demonized Metal, worth only tens of thousands.

Only Zhou Leng found a piece of Spirit Land Jade.

As everyone was chatting, a sudden loud noise came from the mine, accompanied by a piercing alarm echoing nearby.

"Something happened in the mine! Don't run around, gather together, and get ready!"

Xue Chengsong's face changed, and everyone hurriedly prepared for battle, waiting quietly.

After a while, Xue Chengsong's walkie-talkie sounded.

"Young Master Xue, there are two people in the mine! One killed the other, hurt one of ours, and then ran out, muttering something about the Headless God, carrying a cloth package."

Everyone heard the voice from the walkie-talkie, and their expressions changed.

A glimmer of light flickered in their eyes.

Headless God.

The most powerful weapon for Martial Cultivators to date.

Such things can only be used by the disciples of the Martial Valve Race.

Even the worst Headless Remnant God is worth over a billion.

Countless wealthy clans are willing to pay even more to exchange for the needed Headless God.

Once you own a Headless God, you can ascend to great heights, or be worry-free for life if sold.

The value of one Headless God far exceeds all the wealth of the Xue Family.

"What is that person's strength?" Xue Chengsong asked.

"Very strong, our Late Stage Qi Blood person was heavily injured with one palm strike, chest shattered. At least at the Vitality Stage."

Xue Chengsong helplessly glanced at everyone and said, "Stop thinking about it, whoever tries to snatch it will die."

The word "Vitality Stage" sobered everyone.

"Everyone prepare for defense; if the opponent goes on a rampage..."

"Stay away from the entrance!"

Everyone hurriedly grouped together and retreated.

Xue Chengsong found people from the mining site and asked them to use the radio to first send a message to the Shuizhou base, then relay it to Xue Tongming.

Shortly after, a figure emerged from the mine entrance lit by headlights at night, holding something in the left hand.

The person was masked, making it impossible to see their appearance.

He looked around, saw everyone in the distance, hesitated for a moment, and ran west.

Xue Chengsong said, "I kindly ask everyone to keep this incident a secret. My Xue Family will add an extra twenty thousand in travel expenses for each person."

Everyone glanced at Xue Chengsong and nodded silently.

Xue Chengsong continued, "Please stay here for the night until my father has news, then we'll leave. We'll cover all expenses; after all, my Xue Family can't make decisions on this matter."

Everyone naturally understood that anything concerning the Headless God would inevitably alarm the big figures behind the Xue Family, at least the Innate ones.

Xu Tan said, "We might not be the first to discover; at times like this, Innate experts will definitely get involved, making the outside even less safe. We should wait before returning to the Shuizhou base."

Xue Chengsong said, "Each person may choose another piece of High-Energy Ore."

No one dared to offend powerful forces, and there was money and High-Energy Ore to be had, so they said nothing.

Soon, Zhou Leng, like a few others, found a place in the mine's quarters to sleep, restoring energy.

The next morning, everyone had breakfast together.

Xue Chengsong announced with a smile, "Sorry for the disturbance yesterday, now everyone can act freely. But I suggest we take the car together back to the base."

"How did things turn out?" Rao Mingxian wondered with curiosity.

Xue Chengsong shook his head and said, "The outcome is unknown, but I heard all the Innate experts from Rucheng rushed into the depths of Shuizhou Demon City, and even three of Third Young Master Zhao's subordinates went after them. The Seventh Division's masters couldn't sit still, so they got involved too."

"There's no way this Headless God isn't the rumored Innate Secret Treasure, right?" Zhou Leng asked.

"It's very likely. After all, so many treasures couldn't appear all at once."

"We're on the outskirts of Shuizhou Demon City, thousands of kilometers away from the depths, so it shouldn't involve us."

"Good, if it concerns us, we'd already be dead."

"Zhou Leng, are you heading back?" Rao Mingxian asked.

Zhou Leng said, "I still want to kill a few more Magical Beasts, next I need to eat more Meat Herbal Cuisine."

Everyone nodded; Zhou Leng indeed needed to eat more Meat Herbal Cuisine.

"Now that you have the Spirit Land Jade, you're even safer."

Zhou Leng bade farewell to them, checked the map on the Demonized Watch, and gave up on going deeper.

He planned to search the nearby area first, returning by afternoon and taking a car back to Rucheng at night.

If there are no Magical Beasts, we'll talk again next week.

Zhou Leng continued searching.

Soon, he killed a Sharp-toothed Demon Wolf and gained a Meat Herbal Cuisine Voucher.

After that, he didn't encounter any more Magical Beasts.

He ate his lunch and took a Marching Pill, then ran towards the base.

After a while, the roar of an engine came from the left rear.

Zhou Leng looked back, squinted his eyes, slowed down, adjusted his pace, and became cautiously on guard.

On that vehicle, sat over a dozen people.

Half were foreigners with dried hair and green eyes, half were familiar old acquaintances.